An Extra Hour For Your Lineup

There were some interesting findings in a regular feature of Reader's Digest. In It's Around The World article it asked people from around the world, "What would you do with an extra hour?" Some of the results were:

• Spain: 50% would use it for family time
• Turkey: 41% would exercise
• Germany: 37% would sleep
• India: 50% would work another hour at their job

In the US the results were:

• 37% Family Time
• 32% Sleep
• 23% Exercise
• 9% Work

What is even more intriguing is how obtainable an hour could be for many people. Get up 15 minutes earlier, take 15 minutes less for lunch, cut out 15 minutes of web surfing or TV viewing and you already have 45 minutes. Send a couple less e mails and text messages and you are approaching the coveted hour.

The key is being a good ringmaster and making the best use of your discretionary time to make these moments a reality-regardless of how you plan to spend it. What would YOU do with an extra hour-and what are you willing to change to make it a reality.

Where's Your Dressing Room?

I was recently traveling and had a long layover at an airport. I remembered that I had a coupon for one free visit to an airport club. One of those places you can step out of the hustle and noise of the airport and relax or work. I found the club and went inside. Wow! I could almost immediately feel my tension dropping. After finding a comfortable spot I got to work. My productivity was incredible. More than anything, I felt a new sense of focus and direction when I left the club and headed back into the airport concourse.

Reflecting on the experience, I thought about the idea of the dressing room. The place where performers go to prepare for their act. The great ones know proper preparation is critical to peak performance. Staying too close to the noise and chaos of set up can be distracting. Well-meaning people can also derail your mental focus. Too often I start my daily circus or an "act" without spending enough time in my dressing room. Ultimately, my performance suffers.

What could your dressing room be? A spot at home where you spend a few minutes preparing for your day? How about at work? Could it be a place where you can have a few moments of peace and quiet to prepare for your next act? That few moments of preparation could make all the difference.

A Psychological Recession

Following our last post about a lack of focus in the workplace, I found an insightful article written by Geoff Colvin of Fortune magazine. Entitled, "Recession... Or Not?" he cites psychologist Judith M. Bardwick and her thoughts about why people seem so intent that a recession exists when so many facts say otherwise. Colvin brilliantly sums up much of her comments with, "If I am afraid that my sky MAY be falling, then the sky itself IS falling."

Keeping Your Focus

I heard an HR professional make a powerful comment about some of the employees in her company. She said, "I wish more people would stop worrying about losing their job and actually focus on DOING their job. If they spent more time on the latter, they wouldn't have to worry as much about the former." Well said.

It is difficult to stay focused in these uncertain times, but spending time worrying about the worst case scenario does little to improve the situation. In fact, it may become a self-fulfilling prophecy. Multiply one person's lack of productivity by just half of the people within an organization, and sure enough-their worst fears may come true.

Look for tips and strategies on helping others maintain their focus in our next monthly newsletter.

Staying focused on Monday...and beyond

After the weekend, many of us trudge back to work on Monday already feeling tired instead of refreshed. If you are one of those people who has trouble maintaining your energy level on Monday afternoon or anytime for that matter, Redbook magazine gives a multitude of ways to keep your body and mind performing at a higher level. Here are a few of their tips-the article actually goes into more detail about the benefit of each one:

• Eat every 3-4 hours
• Fill up on fiber
• Stay hydrated
• Watch caffeine intake after noon
• Vent your feelings
• Turn on some tunes
• Take belly breaths
• Let go of grudges

I really like the summation given by the author near the beginning of the article. She said that the root causes of our lack of energy normally result from, "How we sleep, What we eat and How we cope emotionally with our problems." Kudos to Nancy Rones for such a timely article.